TikTok sensation Tabitha Brown has gained herself nearly two million followers in just one month, thanks to some lowly carrots and a few spices. Thanks to her work as an actress, Ms. Brown is as smart as she is funny in her short video introducing the world to carrot bacon. Turns out it’s an excellent vegan substitute for the artery clogging real thing. “But does it have any crunch?” you might ask. And it does, plenty of it!

Now that many of us have been hunkered down for a month or more, binging snacks and Netflix, perhaps it’s time to look at healthier alternatives. Maybe this is the reason Tabitha Brown’s recipe has taken the internet by storm. With more than a quarter-million views on Instagram and 2.6 million on TikTok, the carrot bacon is definitely getting people’s attention.

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This is one of my favorite vegan bacon substitutes! Good old carrot bacon!!! What’s your favorite bacon substitute?? #tabithabrown #vegan #carrotbacon #plantbased

A post shared by Tabitha Brown/ (@iamtabithabrown) on Apr 12, 2020 at 2:53pm PDT

It’s really easy to make too!

Begin by preparing a marinade of vinegar, olive oil, smoked paprika, maple syrup and liquid smoke. Optional: vegan Worcestershire sauce. There’s no exact science to the amount of each ingredient that you should add, just go by taste. While the Worcestershire sauce is optional, and admittedly a little tough to find in some places, it pairs nicely with the smoked paprika. So if you’ve got it, or access to it, it’s worth it.

1. Peel a few medium to large carrots into strips. It works best to peel one side of the carrot until you reach the core, then turn it over and do the other side of the carrot. This way you’ll get the fattest and most uniform strips. 
2. Toss the carrot strips in your marinade, and lay them out flat on a baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper, or one of those fancy reusable silicone baking mats.
3. Cook the carrot strips in an air fryer or bake them in an oven set to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, for 18 – 20 minutes, until the strips are tender yet crispy. Be sure to turn the strips halfway through baking, and take care to lay them flat again. This will ensure they crisp evenly.
4. Congratulations! You have now made bacon out of carrots. Is there anything you can’t do?

Pro Tip: You can make a whole bunch and store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge. Reheat them for a few seconds in the microwave.

“I think I’m about to go vegan,” one viewer commented. “OMG why does this look so bomb.”